Is a Politicians’ ability to survive a scandal more to do with their ability to govern and maintain coalition than with the public’s approval?

Throughout American history there have been plenty of scandals in the White house and Congress. Some of these scandals made headline news across the globe, while others were swept under the rug and dealt with more quietly. This begs the question as to what truly makes a scandal newsworthyand how do some politicians seem to walk away from a scandal virtually unscathed, while others are left picking up the pieces of their broken careers and personal lives?

Political Scandal’s in America:

Unfortunately, it has become common place for a politicians’ face to be plastered on every media outlet across American for another scandal. The apologetic politician then holds a news conference, often times with their “loving and supportive” partner by their side, to admit to the public what transpired and to beg for forgiveness. From Bill Clinton and the famous Lewinsky dress, to former governor Spitzer, scandals have laid stack to almost every area and office in America. However, while some scandals seem to all but ruin a person’s life and career, other scandals seem to propel some elected officials further into stardom and increase popularity among voters.check more facts about this at their latest comment.

Political Goodwill:

Often time’s politicians can walk away from a scandal seemingly unscathed and this can largely be attributed to the goodwill the politician has with the public and voters. While most voters will never applaud a politician who gets caught up in a scandal, they are far more likely to forgive and forget it the politician has garnered goodwill with them prior to the scandal. Even though former President Bill Clinton lied under oath regarding his relationship with Monica Lewinsky, he had already established himself as a great leader and drastically increased American’s economy. The American public was also very fed up with the Republican Party, which also highly favored Clinton and offered him another escape route of this high profile scandal. Clinton left office nearly two years after his sex scandalwith some of the highest approval ratings of any American President. On the flip side of the coin are politicians who do not have public favor and thereby find themselves in hot water once they are found to be embroiled in a scandal. Such is the case with former state attorney general and governor, Eliot Spitzer. Spitzer found he was mired in an ugly prostitute scandal and did not have fellow officers or the general public to fall back on, was forced to resign from office merely two days after the scandal was first reported.

Conclusion:

There are far too many circumstances to take into account when trying to understand why some politicians can escape scandal and others cannot. Politicians who seem to be more forthright with their mistakes tend to find more favor with the voting public and can more often than not move forward in their political career. However, it is also extremely important for the politician to have well defined and formed bonds with other politicians and to be held in high regard within their party, or else the party is more likely to turn its back upon the politician who is entangled in the scandal and will gladly see that they are removed from office.http://blogs.lse.ac.uk/usappblog/2014/01/13/politicians-scandal/